Service-based policy for cellular communications

ABSTRACT

A system uses deep packet inspection and a services policy database to select policy control functions based on services associated with a packet data session rather than an access point name or data network name. As a packet data session is initiated, a system management function (SMF) determines a service associated with the session and routes a policy request to one of several policy control functions (PCF or PCRF) depending on the service. Policies specific to the service may be chosen and enforced at the selected PCF/PCRF.

BACKGROUND

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.

3GPP architectures specify that a policy for a session is selected based on the connection point, that is, the Access Point Name (APN) for 4G or the Data Network Name (DNN) for 5G. These architectures specify that the same policy applies for all packet data sessions via that connection point.

SUMMARY

A service-based policy architecture allows multiple policies to be applied to different services accessing the same APN/DNN. A gateway may inspect packets for content indicating the service and direct the session to different policy charging and rule functions (PCRFs) so that each service may be handled separately.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures depict a preferred embodiment for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art may readily recognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles described herein.

FIG. 1 is an simplified and exemplary block diagram of a 4G cellular communication system in accordance with the current disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an simplified and exemplary block diagram of a 5G cellular communication system in accordance with the current disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary system management function in accordance with the current disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary policy control function in accordance with the current disclosure; and

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method implementing a service-based policy for cellular communications.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As a mobile device can (and usually does have) have several IP addresses (or IPv6 prefixes) at once, for example, one for Internet access and one for operator services such as voice over LTE (VoLTE), each is bound to a different virtual network interface on the device. In this case, several protocol data unit (PDU) sessions are established simultaneously. Each is identified with a (human readable) name which in 2G, 3G and 4G networks was referred to as the APN (Access Point Name). In the 5G core, it is referred to as the DNN (Data Network Name).

Each session is how controlled by a set of policies according to the APN/DNN. For example, the subscriber may be charged based on use of a high volume application or have volume limits applied during peak usage hours. However, only one set of policies may be applied to each session according to the policy and charging rules function (PCRF) associated with the APN/DNN.

A system in accordance with the current disclosure performs a deep packet inspection on protocol data units (PDUs) to determine a service with which the PDU is associated. The PCRF and therefore the policy for a particular packet session associated with those PDU's is then selected based on the service rather than the APN/DNN for that session.

Turning to FIG. 1, a block diagram illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a system 100 in accordance with the current disclosure. The system 100 may include a plurality of subscriber devices 102, 104 in communication with a radio access network (RAN) 120 including cell sites 106, 108, 110 and other infrastructure equipment not depicted in FIG. 1.

Managing communication between subscriber devices and between a subscriber device and an external data entity (the outside world) 142, is a core network 122, called in a 4G LTE example, the evolved packet core (EPC). The core network 122 illustrated here is greatly simplified for the sake of clarity. A serving gateway 124 may act as a router between cell sites 106, 108, 110 and the rest of traffic-oriented components. Mobility management entities (MMEs) 126, 128 manage signaling to the base stations including call set up and handoffs. A home subscriber server (HSS) 130 may be a central database that contains information about all the subscribers to the operator's communication system 100. In older communication system configurations the role of the HSS was performed by a home location registry (HLR). The HSS 130 may provide other system components with subscriber operational information. The functions and data associated with a prior art HSS may be found in several standards documents such as 3GPP TS 22.041. A dynamic subscriber profile service (DSS) 132 manages subscriber profiles. In some embodiments, the DSS 132 may be embodied within the HSS 130. In other embodiments, an equipment identity register (EIR) may be incorporated in the DSS 132 for device whitelisting and blacklisting among other functions. A session management function-packet data network gateway control (packet data gateway, or P-GW) 134 a may handle communication between subscriber devices 102, 104 and the outside world or endpoint, the digital entity 142 a. The digital entity 142 a may be coupled to the core network via access point 138 a.

Policy servers 136 a and 137 a, known separately in the 4G example as a policy control and charging rules function (PCRF) are responsible for control decision-making and flow-based charging. In an embodiment, the policy server 136 a may instruct the P-GW 132 to enforce the PCRF's decisions via a policy control enforcement function (not depicted in FIG. 1) which may reside in the P-GW 132 a. In a prior art embodiment, the selection of a policy server would be made by the P-GW 132 based on the APN being accessed, in this example, the APN 138 a. As described herein, the P-GW 132 a may select from multiple PCRFs 136 a, 137 a based on the service associated with a data communication, described in more detail below.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cellular communication network 200 supporting 5G communications. Reference numbers from FIG. 1 are reused for corresponding roles/functions in FIG. 2. A subscriber device 102 b may be connected to the network via a radio access network 120 b. In this example, the subscriber device 102 b may also be connected to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 160. A session management function (SMF) 134 b. The SMF 134 b is responsible for checking whether requests from the subscriber device 102 b are compliant with the user's subscription including session types and quality of service (QoS) limits using policies stored in a first policy control function 136 b and a second policy control function 137 b. That is, the SMF 134 b selects a PCF that is used for policy identification and enforcement. The user plane function (UPF) 138 b provides the interface to the outside world, illustrated as digital entity 142 b. As above, in the prior art implementation, the SMF 134 b selects a PCF 136 b or 137 b based on the data network name (DNN) to which a particular data session is connected. In the network 200 in accordance with the current disclosure, the SMF 134 b may select a PCF based on the service associated with the data session, not its DNN. The selection of more than one PCF 136 b or 137 b allows policy settings, such as service levels, to be tailored by application/service rather than by a data connection's access point.

Two elements of the networks 100 and 200 support the service-based selection of policy control functions. FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary session management function 134. The SMF 134 may include a network interface 180 coupled to a processor 182. The processor 182 may be connected to a services database 186 that stores information about the various services supported by the networks 100 and 200. These services may include, but are not limited to, voice over LTE (VOLTE), rich communication services (RCS), support for various Internet of Things (IoT) devices, or services that allow the use of one phone number across multiple devices such as T-Mobile's DIGITs service.

For example, a system in accordance with the current disclosure allows one PCRF/PCF to be selected for a Voice over LTE (VOLTE) service while a different PCRF/PCF to be selected for a Rich Communication Service (RCS) for communications from the same subscriber device 102. In another embodiment, a subscriber device supporting separate 4G and 5G sessions using different IP Media Subsystems (IMS) may be directed to separate PCRFs 136 a, 137 a, 136 b, 137 b.

An exemplary session management function (SMF) 134 a, 134 b is illustrated in FIG. 3. The SMF 134 a, 134 b may include a processor 180 coupled to a network interface 182 used to communicate with other components of the system 100, 200. A services database 184 may hold a list of services supported by the system 100, 200, such as VOLTE and video over LTE (VILTE). A deep packet inspection module 186 may inspect packets to determine not only their origin and destination but the type of service with which the packet's session is associated. The deep packet inspection module 186 may reference the services database 184 to match data found in packets to supported services. A policy enforcement function 188 of the SMF 134 a, 134 b may enforce policies selected via the PCRF 136 a, 137 a, 136 b, 137 b as well as its own policies related, for example, to QoS.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary PCF/PCRF 136. The PCF/PCRF 136 may include a processor 190 coupled to a network interface 192 used to communicate with other system elements. The PCF/PCRF 136 may also include a unified policy framework (UPF) 194, and for 5G systems, a control plane function policy 195. Another component of the PCF/PCRF 136 may be a unified data repository (UDR) 196 that may be used to store, among other things, packet flow descriptions for application detection and subscription data.

A policy-per-service repository 198 may store policies such as data limits, QoS settings, and pricing related to specific services. In accordance with the current disclosure, these policies may differ between PCRF's, such as PCRC 136 a and 137 a or PCF 136 b and 137 b. The ability to direct policy requests related to a data session's service is supported, in part, by the service-based policy repository 198.

A method 200 of implementing a service-based policy for cellular communications is illustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 5. At block 202, a data packet may be received at an SMF/P-GW 134, the data packet being associated with a data communication session, for example, a voice call or an internet query. In an embodiment, the packet may not include actual user data but may be associated with the setup of the data communication session between endpoints. The SMF/P-GW 134 may inspect not only the packet header but may inspect the contents of the packet (deep packet inspection) to determine a service associated with the data communication session. The service may be compared at block 206 to a list of services, for example, stored in a services database 184 to determine if a special PCF/PCRF should be invoked. If not, a default PCF/PCRF, for example, PCRF 136 a or PCF 136 b may be selected based on the data session's APN/DNN, as done in the prior art. The default PCF/PCRF 136 a, 136 b, at block 210, may identify the appropriate policy or policies according to the service information passed from the SMF/P-GW 134. Other system elements, including the SMF/P-GW 134 may manage the data session using the selected policies at block 216. As discussed above, these policies may apply to allowable use, data limits, bandwidth restrictions, and more.

Returning to block 206, when the service identified does not use the default setting, the ‘no’ branch may be taken to block 212 where a different PCF/PCRF, such as PCF 137 b, may be selected and a message may be sent to the selected PCF/PCRF. At block 214, a policy or policies appropriate to the identified service may be selected and used, at block 216 to manage the data session.

At least one technical effect is the ability to expand the capability of 4G and 5G systems to increase the system flexibility related to policies managing different types of data sessions according to the service associated with that data session.

The current system and method benefit both users and system providers by allowing more flexibility in managing data sessions including bandwidth, data limits, and tariffs associated with different data sessions between the same subscriber device via the same APN/DNN.

The figures depict preferred embodiments for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles described herein.

Upon reading this disclosure, those of skill in the art will appreciate still additional alternative structural and functional designs for the systems and methods described herein through the disclosed principles herein. Thus, while particular embodiments and applications have been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are not limited to the precise construction and components disclosed herein. Various modifications, changes and variations, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art, may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the systems and methods disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope defined in any appended claims. 

1. A method of operating a cellular communication system, the method comprising: identifying a request for a data connection between a mobile device <102> and a digital entity <142> external to the cellular communication system; determining a network access point <140> for the data connection; determining a service associated with the data connection; routing a policy request to a policy control function <136> corresponding to the service; at the policy control function, selecting a policy for governing the data connection, the selection based on the service associated with the data connection independent of the network access point.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: identifying a second request for a second data connection between the mobile device and a second infrastructure component external to the cellular communication system; determining the network access point for the second data connection is the same network access point as the original network access point; determining that a second service associated with the second data connection is different from the original service for the original data connection; routing a second policy request to a second policy control function based on the second service; at the second policy control function, selecting a second policy different from the policy, the second policy corresponding to the second service.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the service is a voice over LTE (VOLTE) service and the second service is a rich communication service (RCS).
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the data connection is a first Gx Interface for a 4G system and the second data connection is a second Gx Interface for a 5G system.
 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the service is a data Internet of Things (IoT) service and the second service is a VOLTE IoT service.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the service is a VOLTE service and the second service is a video over LTE (VILTE) service.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the request for data connection, determining the network access point for the data connection, and determining a service associated with the data connection comprise identifying the request for the data connection at a session management function-packet data network gateway-control (SMF+PGW-C) <134>, determining the network access point for data connection at the SMF+PGW-C, and determining the service associated with the data connection at the SMF+PGW-C.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving an instruction from a user specifying service levels on an application by application basis for applications on a user device that use the data connection.
 9. A cellular communication system comprising: a session management function-packet data network gateway-control (SMF+PGW-C) including a deep packet inspection module, the deep packet inspection module determining a service associated with a payload of a data packet; a connection between the SMF+PGW-C and a network access point, the network access point coupled to an external digital entity; a policy control function (PCF) coupled to the SMF+PGW-C, the PCF including a policy database according to the network access point and the service associated with the payload of the data packet, wherein a policy for the data packet is selected at the PCF according to the data packet based on the service associated with the data packet.
 10. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the SMF+PGW-C selects a PCF based on the service associated with the data packet.
 11. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the SMF+PGW-C includes a service identifier a in a policy request made to the PCF.
 12. The cellular communication system of claim 11, wherein the PCF examines the request for policy to identify the service associated with the data packet.
 13. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the service is a voice over LTE (VOLTE) service.
 14. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the service is a video over LTE (VILTE) service.
 15. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the service is an Internet of Things (IoT) service.
 16. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the policy comprises a data rate for the data packet.
 17. The cellular communication system of claim 9, wherein the policy comprises a tariff for the data packet. 